The Not Secret
by lahmrh
Summary: ...Or Six people who weren't surprised to learn Kirk and Spock were a couple. Kirk and Spock's decision to make their relationship public doesn't go quite as planned.


Notes: Written for the comment_fic prompt:_ The drama of coming out (to family or colleagues or friends, up to writer) is somewhat diminished when they explain that the secrecy wasn't as secret as one or both of them had believed._

Title comes from the relevant TV Tropes page. :)

**The Not Secret ****(o****r Six people who weren't surprised to learn Kirk and Spock were a couple)**  


1. McCoy

The first person Kirk tells (or tries to tell) is McCoy.

He swallows as he heads towards McCoy's office. It isn't that he's worried about his friend's reaction, more that he's a little uncertain about telling people in general. (He's still kind of amazed there's actually something to tell.) Add to that the fact that Spock isn't exactly one of McCoy's favourite people, and okay, maybe he's a _little_ worried. He's still contemplating the best way to break the news as he flops down in the chair across from McCoy.

"So, I'm sleeping with Spock." Yeah, that probably wasn't it.

To his annoyance, McCoy just snorts. "Yeah, tell me something I don't know."

"I'm serious!" Kirk protests.

"So'm I," McCoy replies. "And for the record, I'm glad you're happy, but I don't want to talk about it. Ever."

Part of Kirk is relieved that McCoy is taking the news so well, but most of him is just confused. "Wait, you _knew_?"

"The whole damn ship knows." He rolls his eyes. "You're not exactly subtle, Jim."

Kirk opens his mouth to protest, but ends up shutting it again when he can't think of a good retort. "So, you're okay with it?" he asks instead.

McCoy shrugs. "Keep the details to yourself, and we'll be fine."

Kirk nods, feeling slightly happier. The conversation might not have gone exactly according to plan, but at least he doesn't have to worry about the thing with Spock messing up his friendship with McCoy. _Besides_, he thinks as he makes his way out of sickbay, _It can't be the_ whole _ship._

* * *

2. Uhura

He lets Spock tell Uhura. After some discussion they decide that it'll likely go more smoothly if he arranges to be somewhere else at the time, so he goes off to annoy McCoy. When he returns, he finds Spock waiting in his quarters, staring at the chessboard in concentration.

"How'd it go?" he asks.

Spock looks puzzled. "She said she has been aware of our relationship for over three months."

Kirk stares at him. "But we only got together two-and-a-half months ago."

"Indeed," Spock says. "It was a strange conversation."

* * *

3. Chekov and 4. Sulu

He plans to talk to Sulu next - he's probably Kirk's closest friend after McCoy and Spock - but he doesn't get the chance. The day after Spock's conversation with Uhura, he beams down with a landing party to explore a new planet they've come across. They've only been there ten minutes when Spock slips while examining a riverbank and falls into the water.

He manages to get out again almost immediately, but he's drenched from head to foot and clearly miserable. "You're shivering," Kirk says, rubbing his arm with concern. "Go get changed before you freeze."

"I am not likely to freeze, Captain," Spock replies, but his expression softens slightly.

It's at that moment that Kirk hears a whisper from behind him. "Do they think they are being subtle?"

He whips around in time to see Sulu elbow Chekov in the ribs and give him an apologetic smile. _Oh, you have got to be_ _kidding me._

Maybe he and Spock haven't been hiding things as well as they thought.

* * *

5. Scotty

Okay, Kirk thinks, just because McCoy and Uhura and Chekov and Sulu already know, doesn't mean _everyone_ knows. Surely there must be people on the ship who have better things to do than talk about him and Spock. With that in mind, he goes to find Scotty.

Kirk likes to treat conversations with Scotty like an adventure. The engineer can leap from discussing sandwiches to explaining the best way to realign a warp core to complaining at length about the idiocy of certain Starfleet bureaucrats without pausing for breath. The upshot is that if there's something Kirk wants to discuss he doesn't have to worry about finding a sensible segue into the conversation. He usually just waits until Scotty is briefly distracted by something and blurts it out. In a way it's kind of refreshing.

This time, what he blurts out is, "Spock and I are together."

"Oh, aye." Scotty doesn't look up from the control panel he's working on, and Kirk's heart sinks.

"You already knew that, didn't you?" he asks.

Scotty does look up at that. "Sorry, was it supposed to be a secret?"

"Apparently not," Kirk mutters darkly, and goes to find Spock.

* * *

6. Winona

Several weeks later, they get within range of Earth and Kirk has the chance to contact his mother. They exchange the usual small talk, and when she asks him if he has any news, he hesitates. He hadn't planned to tell her about the relationship just yet, but since it seems like everyone else in his life already knows about it, it seems only fair. "I'm seeing someone," he admits, feeling his cheeks heat up. "It's... it's pretty serious, actually."

His heart pounds in his chest as he waits for her response, but she just smiles. "That's great, honey," she says, then adds blithely, "Is it your first officer? I knew you two would work it out eventually."

Kirk bangs his head on the desk in frustration.


End file.
